Aircraft Navigation Data for GPM Precipitation Validation in North Carolina

North Carolina is the focus of this dataset containing navigation and atmospheric parameters from a Cessna Citation II research aircraft. It was collected by the University of North Dakota for NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement Ground Validation IPHEx field campaign from March 6 to June 13, 2014. The data supports the evaluation of satellite precipitation measurements and hydrological modeling.

Use Cases

• Calibrating satellite-based precipitation estimates by comparing them with in-situ atmospheric conditions recorded during flights.
• Analyzing spatial patterns of air temperature and wind speed for meteorological studies in the southeastern United States.
• Providing precise aircraft location (latitude, longitude, altitude) and time data for reconstructing flight paths and sensor sampling locations.
• Supporting hydrological model inputs with atmospheric observations collected during a focused field campaign.

Strengths

• Data originates from a dedicated NASA field campaign (IPHEx) with a clear scientific objective for satellite validation.
• Provides a temporally focused record from over three months of flights during the 2014 campaign.
• Includes multiple atmospheric parameters like location, temperature, and wind speed from a research-grade aircraft platform.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source.
• Conflicting last update dates exist between platforms (2014-06-13 on NASA Earthdata and 2026-03-13 on Data.gov).
• License is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit terms.

Provenance

Source

University of North Dakota (UND) Cessna Citation II aircraft, collected for NASA's GPM Ground Validation program.

Collection Method

In-situ sampling from aircraft flights during the IPHEx field campaign.

Time Range

2014-03-06 to 2014-06-13

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:58:42.307655

Geography

North Carolina, USA